Ewa-Marine U-BXP100 Underwater Housing? To buy or not to buy?

I am spanking new to the underwater photography realm. I am looking to shoot underwater portraits. Brides, Seniors, Family, Sports teams, and a occasional vacation snorkeling trip. I have done some research and this is the option I am fond of:

Ewa-Marine U-BXP100 Underwater Housing

I am not a certified diver yet. I would love to be one day. For now a snorkel will have to do. So I will not be diving to much deeper than 10-15 ft at any time. Being this is my first purchase of underwater gear, and I would like to make sure it is a good fit, and there is a market for it in my area, I do not want to spend $5K on the set up.

I have 2 Canon 5d's and a New 5d Mark II on the way. Several 2.8 lenses.

My impression of these housings has been that they're basically a heavy duty zip-lock baggie with very limited access to digital camera controls. Might be ok for your application, but I'd hate to risk an expensive camera & lens. Have you looked at Ikelite housings?

I have, I am just afraid of the huge start up cost. $3,000+ for housing + Ports + Strobes. I am sure the benefit would be huge, this is what I had planed on in the first place, but I came across these bags and I thought it would let me try out the market for a lower cost.

If you have your camera gear insured for water damage (read flood), then go for it. Its definitely cheaper. You may be ok. Not sure what the cost of the Ewa housing is. If you go for Ikelite you know that you can take it diving when you become certified. Its more of an investment for longer term. If you're also looking at buying strobes now, make sure they would be compatible with an upgraded housing, so you don't have to buy different strobes later. Your decisions would depend on when/if you become a certified diver & become a more serious u/w photographer. You do have a Platinum Card, right????????? Just as a reference, the higher end aluminum housings start at ~$3500 + ports & misc parts.

Good advice so far. You will have fun and make a good start in the pool using the Ewa bag. You will NOT want to use it w/ a lens wider than 28mm so mostly you'll be constrained to head and shoulders portraits. You can back up further to get more into the photo, but it is going to look washed out and sorta crappy. THis is because the Ewa uses a flat port.

If you want to try with something more serious, I suggest a used 5D housing or a 5D housing converted to a 5DII. YOu'll still be looking at $1,000 + though, for housing + ports.